Conversation of the Hearts
by Slayne22
Summary: Very short Valentine's Day story. Beach Head has no use for Valentine's Day... until this year. BHCG.


CONVERSATION OF THE HEARTS

By Slayne22

Disclaimer: Don't own them, don't profit from them. Dang

Notes- This was an assignment for the GI Joe Bootcamp list. It turned out quite well, and I thank all the fellow writers on that list who reviewed this and gave me feedback! Thanks peeps!

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Wayne Sneeden, aka Beach Head, watched as the bartender drew a frosted mug from the cooler and expertly filled it with beer from one of the taps. The man set it down carefully in front of the Joe and picked up the ten-dollar bill Wayne had left there for him. He made quick change and set several loose bills beside the mug along with a small bowl of candy. Wayne stared down at the amber draft as the iced glass threw off white mist in the warmth of the room.

So... his annual drinking binge was here again. Yeah, ok, it was only two beers, but for him that was as bad as it got. His gaze shifted to the bowl of candy. It was filled with small, colorful candy hearts with tacky sayings printed on them. He told himself that his mood was less about the holiday and more about the absolute irritation of his teammates on this day. He'd been having a good time this morning during the usual PT session. Lady Jaye had fallen in the water pit; Wreck had caught his pants on the barbed wire and ripped them completely OFF his body; and Cover Girl had been in fine form and ready to do battle with him. 

That was something he always looked forward to. He'd brought out his best new torture techniques, and she'd passed through them all, flipping him off no less than nine times to his recollection. Even now he smiled a bit at the memory.

She'd given as good as she got though. Besides the numerous, if unoriginal, hand gestures, she'd managed to stick a sign on his back that read "This end towards enemy". He'd been gearing up for a much anticipated dressing down when Wreck had attempted to either defend her or make her misery worse, he couldn't decide which, by saying, "Aww, Beachie... Courtney was just trying to give you a Valentine!"

He'd stared at the sailor in confusion until the date had slammed home in his mind and he'd realized it was Valentine's Day. His look of confusion had slowly turned to horror. At least Courtney had seemed to be as surprised as he was. She'd recovered more quickly than he had and had winked at him then blown him a kiss. It had been sufficient to send Wreck into peals of laughter and himself into a sullen fit.

Valentine's Day. What a crock. If there was a less useful holiday out there, he couldn't think of one. He'd volunteered to take the evening watch so that the rest of the Joes could make plans with their significant others. He'd considered not doing it simply to throw a wrench into the works, but... in the end, he'd given in as always. He wasn't sure why exactly he always did, but it was always the evening watch and then his two beers. Every year. It wasn't like he had plans this year anyway. Or any year. That was fine. He didn't WANT to have plans. He hated this holiday because romance just wasn't his style, and it was a waste of time. 

No other reason, right?

Right. He was plenty sick of lace and hearts and candy today. 

He glanced around the bar. There were only a few other people there. A couple sat close together at one of the tables. Flint and Lady Jaye played billiards in the back, or at least they had been playing. Now they were leaning against the table, their mouths locked together. He shook his head and returned to his beer.

Another ten-dollar bill was suddenly slapped down on the bar beside him, and he jerked his head up to look to his right. Cover Girl shot a glance his way as she settled onto the stool next to him.

"Hey, Hardass." She nodded in greeting. He was surprised but covered it with a glare.

"Barbiedoll." He replied casually, lifting the beer to his lips to take a swallow.

The bartender was on the phone, his voice low and holding a teasing lilt as he obviously talked to a sweetheart. 

"Hey! Casanova!" Cover Girl waved at the man, trying to capture his attention. He looked annoyed but set the phone down and wandered over to see what she wanted. She motioned at Beach Head's mug. "I'll have what he's having."

Wayne glanced at her. "I figured you would have had a date tonight with some suave guy named Ricardo or something."

She rolled her eyes. "And I thought you'd have a date tonight with some heavily stacked chick named Big Rhonda or something."

"Now, that's just wrong" he muttered, hearing her laugh.

The bartender set another beer down, and Wayne tapped his own stack of bills, meeting the man's eyes. The man nodded and slid enough money from the stack to cover the draft. 

Courtney glanced towards him. "Thanks."

He nodded, staring up at the TV. "Sure. I just don't wanna hear anything about Valentine's Day or love, got it?"

She snorted in a very undignified manner. "Fine by me, Cupid McKilljoy. My lips are sealed."

"First time for everything." He muttered. She said nothing in reply but picked her mug up so her middle finger was prominently extended on the outside of the glass facing him. 

He smirked. 

They watched the TV for a while in silence while they drank. Even the news was filled with stories of true love and happy endings. Wayne was actually considering a third beer, even though he hadn't finished his first yet, when suddenly Courtney reached into the candy bowl and picked out a small yellow heart. She set it carefully in front of him and returned her attention to the TV.

He looked down at the heart. In red printing, it said: 'HOW R U'.

His eyes slid sideways to look at her. She ignored him. He looked at the candy bowl and picked a heart from it. He set it on the bar and used the pad of one finger to slowly slide it over in front of her.

'TOO COOL'.

She glanced down at it and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. She said nothing though and sipped her beer. He ignored her as well and watched the TV. Soon another heart appeared in front of him.

'SMILE'.

He plucked a random heart from the dish, flipped it around to its unprinted side, and drew his ka-bar knife, using the tip to carve 'NO' into the candy. He slid it over to her.

She made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a muffled laugh. She dug through the dish and finally picked a heart to set in front of him again.

'MARRY ME'.

He choked on his beer and coughed violently as she laughed. The bartender gave them an odd look but didn't approach. 

"Do they make one that says 'WHEN HELL FREEZES OVER'?" Wayne asked when his coughs subsided.

Courtney snorted and shook her head. "Not unless that's Sneeden-ese for 'BE MINE'."

He lifted one corner of his mouth. He was almost done with his second beer and realized he didn't want to go home. He stared at the bowl of candy hearts. His hand hovered over them. He glanced back at Courtney and found her leaning on her elbows on the bar, looking back at him. He held her gaze as his fingers dropped down on the piece he wanted. He slid it over to her, watching her carefully.

'MAD 4 U'.

She glanced down at it, and he watched her teeth sink softly into her bottom lip. Damn it. He didn't want to enjoy this holiday. 

Her eyes met his as her hand began its hovering act above the candy dish. She hesitated a long time and then grabbed one out and set it in front of him, as if trying to do it before losing her nerve. He looked down.

'KISS ME'.

He looked up at her. She was silent but held his gaze without faltering. The moment stretched on and then he leaned towards her. She didn't move as he wrapped a hand gently around her head then brought his mouth to hers. He saw her close her eyes just before their lips met. He kissed her lightly, pressing their lips together for a long moment before brushing her tongue briefly with his and then pulling back slightly. She stared at him.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Hardass." She murmured with a smile. 

He smiled back and pressed one more of the candy hearts into her hand.

'DON'T TELL'.

"My lips are sealed." She mused, raising one brow.

He shook his head and drew her close again. "I'd rather they weren't." He said, just before kissing her again.


End file.
